They say defense wins championships, but a team won’t go far if its offense doesn’t show up.
The New York Giants’ defense was the only contributor on Sunday night in a 19-3 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
While nothing can correct a loss, it was remarkable that the Cowboys were held to that much, including just a field goal in the second half, considering they bossed possession for over 34 minutes.
The Giants’ offense saw the ball for nine minutes less as the Odell Beckham-less unit looked lost in Dallas.
For a team that was ready to boast a potent offensive attack in 2017, Sterling Shepard and Evan Engram led New York receivers with 44 yards apiece while Brandon Marshall had just one reception in his debut.
Eli Manning and Co. could only put up 224 yards of total offense while the Cowboys put up 392 total yards.
Much of the struggles stemmed from the Giants’ offensive line, which constantly gave Manning little to no time to get the ball out of his hands. The veteran making his 200th-straight start on Sunday night was sacked three times and picked off once.
Relegated to throwing short passes, Manning recorded only 211 passing yards despite completing 28-of-37 passes.
The offense was almost unwatchable in the first half as they could only accrue 49 total yards and just two first downs. By contrast, the Cowboys had 47 offensive plays in the first half.
Despite enjoying much of the possession, the Giants defense found ways to limit the damage. In the game’s first 28 minutes, Dallas could only muster a pair of field goals.
But with 1:46 left in the first half, Dak Prescott hit Jason Witten for a 12-yard touchdown pass. It would be the only touchdown of the night as Dan Bailey knocked home four field goals.
Still, Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott, who was granted a reprieve and was able to avoid a six-game suspension, made the most of his season debut as he rushed for 104 yards on 24 carries.
Giants rookie Aldrick Rosas converted a 25-yard field goal to provide New York’s only points of the night in the third quarter.
